It’s been over 30 years since the original “My Little Pony” (a.k.a. “MLP”) franchise made its debut and its following has never been stronger.

The 2010 reboot by Lauren Faust (fyre-flye), “My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic,” had its start on DeviantArt where Lauren originally posted the early concept art which would later evolve into the ponies we know and love today. Little did she know that her early concepts and her love of “My Little Pony” would start a cultural phenomenon that would take on a life of its own.

From the onset, Lauren created “MLP” with the intention of breaking the stereotypes long plaguing “girls’ shows,” by putting an end to the dismissive manner in which these “silly and stupid” shows were being produced. Why couldn’t a children’s show have well-defined characters with different skills, unique dreams, human flaws and diverse personalities?

Meet “The Mane 6”

“Twilight Sparkle” is a dedicated student who enjoys reading and learning new things. “Applejack” is an entrepreneur who runs her family’s farm and knows the value of hard work. “Rarity” is a creative designer with a passion for fashion who runs her own boutique. “Rainbow Dash” is a driven athlete who is always pushing her boundaries and aiming for the gold. “Fluttershy” is a kind and nurturing soul who takes care of and nurses woodland critters. And “Pinkie Pie” is the life of the party, bringing cheer wherever she goes. Each also possesses one of the powerful “Elements of Harmony” or ‘Elements of Friendship” (Applejack: honesty; Rarity: generosity; Rainbow Dash: loyalty; Fluttershy: kindness; Pinkie Pie: laughter; and Twilight Sparkle: magic) that when combined create one of the strongest sources of magic in Equestria. Their friendship is not ony magic, but a superpower that helps protect the pony world against all evils.

The Elements Of Feminism

My Little Pony is part of a growing trend in entertainment to finally acknowledge and accomodate the female viewer, girl or woman, and create stories they want to see. And the best part is “My Little Pony” provides entertainment that’s not the standard cut and dried simplistic mush, but built on morally complicated storylines. The team behind the show has taken pride in creating a “children’s show” that’s several cuts above and respected their audience as intelligent human beings.

“My Little Pony” is teaching young girls - and adults - real life lessons about what true friendship is. Twilight and her friends are able to touch on important topics such as bullying, social skills, and acceptance for those who are different than you, while never detracting from being an amusing and entertaining show. Feminine stereotypes have been banished from Equestria and individuality instead is embraced and celebrated. The show’s main characters are six distinct types of females who all become friends and learn to work together to solve different problems in each episode, teaching girls that different types of personalities can be friends. At the same time, the show’s appeal goes far beyond its target audience of young girls.

Fandom Is Magic

“MLP’s” universal themes, imbued with positivity and kindness, have spread like wildfire, touching the lives of girls, boys, women, and men. Fans of the show, known as Bronies (male fans) and Pegasisters (female fans), have created a strong international community that thrives both online and at “My Little Pony” conventions. People are rallying around the central idea of the show that a group of friends, a community, can make a difference in the world for the better. The “My Little Pony” community is one of the friendliest and most welcoming fandoms to be found in the world. Bronies’ and Pegasisters’ love of “My Little Pony” has inspired them to create things such as original music, online communities, cosplays, and you guessed it, fan art!

ALRIGHT, EVERYPONY! Grab your party cannon and get ready to travel to Ponyville for a Grand Galloping Gala of fan art that is definitely 20% cooler.

It’s been over 30 years since the original “My Little Pony” (a.k.a. “MLP”) franchise made its debut and its following has never been stronger. The 2010 reboot by Lauren Faust (fyre-flye), “My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic,” had its start on DeviantArt where Lauren originally posted the early concept art which would later evolve into the ponies we know and love today. Little did she know that her early concepts and her love of “My Little Pony” would start a cultural phenomenon that would take on a life of its own.

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1) Twilight Sparkle because I feel she is a strong willed hard working character. She is a good role model, has great interests, and I just really apreciate how she acts a lot of the time. I also love that the nerdy shut in becomes the main character for once in a show that isn't solely about how intelligent they are, and is humble and even somewhat insecure about it.

1.) Princess Luna is best pony! I never really had a favorite pony before Luna. The mane 6 are all nice characters and each has their own perk that makes them appealing but I think I what made me pick Luna is that she was misunderstood and felt under appreciated even though she is caring and compassionate. These feelings are ones we deal with no matter what personality we each have. Luna's social awkwardness is something I personally connect with due to often times feeling like the odd one out when in groups.

2.) More ponies! I especially like the ponified pop culture references.

Also, my favorite is Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Twilight Sparkle. I am all three of those ponies. A bookworm, a tomboy, and a caring individual. My favorite pony race is pegasus's, and I also love the unicorns. Earth ponies are meh.

It really has been amazing watching the journey that MLP has taken. I actually watched the first two episodes due to an article that claimed it was terribly racist, saying that the only black ponies were Equestria guards... and so slaves. Faust reacted with a very interesting response, which is that there are three races of ponies in Equestria: Earth Ponies, Unicorns and Pegasus, and that each was equally represented in the Mane Six. I rolled my eyes a little and decided to spend an hour watching a couple episodes just to see which side of the argument I'd come down on. ...And now I'm eagerly awaiting the new season.

As for comments about the darker side of the fandom... it's true in every fandom, it's just a little more main stream in Ponies. I do wish that fans of the "adult" side of Ponies would be more diligent in making sure their NSFW things were locked down, so that younger/more innocent members of the fandom could enjoy the G rated sides of the MLP fandom. It's been exciting to see a cartoon that is so positive and girl-friendly become so terribly main stream, even if some of the ideals of the show are warped a bit in fandom. But as I said, that happens in every fandom, so I enjoy what I can and avoid the rest.

I've never been a huge fan of the style of the show, the big eyes freak me out a bit, but the style fits so beautifully into the animation that it won me over. The fan art, however, is even better than the official art most of the time, I feel. Pony artists really go above and beyond, be it imitating the style of the show, throwing the Mane Six back into the style of previous generations or transforming them into an entirely original or different style.

There actually is a fandom census called the herd census that comes out on new years (starting 2012) that gathers all sorts of data on participants from all over. That is one thing they ask. You can check out results here: www.herdcensus.com/ it's actually really interesting. It looks long but it's lots of charts and actually is pretty quick to go through one of them.. or just find figures that are intriguing to you.

Best pony? I would say Rainbow Dash or Twilight SparkleI like Nightmare Moon & Luna too but eeeh, I wouldn't really get attached over a show - It's good for drawing practice I suppose but still, I don't know why people get so white-knighty about it.

Although one thing for sure: Cue the 13-y/o fangirls and the grumpy old men

As well for a next theme - perhaps take a look into older cartoons? Too bad no one knew Pitt & Kantrop, used to love that. Not even the internet saved any of its episodes. Oooh or Watch my Chops (or Corneil & Bernie in 'merica and Europe)

I would love to see more G1 art/characters featured! It was the line that started it all and has a strong, life-long fanbase from the 80s. Some magnificent pieces have been produced over the years and even the practice of pony customization was created from this fanbase. I think more people would appreciate the visual transformation, and grant some recognition to the G1 fans and artists.